The cage match between Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg may not be a joke

The day after Elon Musk challenged Mark Zuckerberg on social media to a “cage match” this month, Ultimate Fighting Championship president Dana White received a text.

It was from Mr. Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta. Mr. White, who presides over the world’s premier mixed martial arts competition, which is fought in cage-like rings, asked if Mr. Mask was serious about fighting.

Mr. White called Mr. Musk, who runs Tesla, Twitter, and SpaceX, and confirmed he was willing to get rid of. Mr. White then passed that on to Mr. Zuckerberg. In response, Mr. Zuckerberg posted on Instagram: “Send me the location,” referring to the catchphrase of Khabib Nurmagomedov, one of the UFC’s most decorated athletes.

Since then, Mr. White said, he has spoken to the tech billionaires on a nightly basis to organize the standoff. He said he was on the phone on Tuesday with these two until 12:45 am. “They both want to do it,” he added.

If you thought the cage fight between two of the world’s richest men was just a far-fetched social media stunt, think again.

Over the past 10 days, Mr. White said he, Mr. Musk, and Mr. Zuckerberg — with the help of advisers — negotiated behind the scenes as they slowly moved toward a physical fight. Although there are no guarantees of a match, the outlines of the event are taking shape, said Mr. White and three people familiar with the discussions.

Mr. White said the fight would be an exhibition match and outside the UFC’s official purview and rights deals, though he would help produce the event. Technology leaders agreed there should be a philanthropic component, said Mr White and a person familiar with the talks, with work continuing on the details. The preferred venue is Las Vegas, which requires approval from the Nevada Athletic Commission. On Thursday Mr. Musk chirp that the event could also have taken place in the Roman Colosseum.

Two people close to him said Mr. Zuckerberg’s friends and advisers generally supported the match, though others said the fight would be a distraction rather than the best use of his time. A person close to Mr. Musk said that while he hates sports and doesn’t seem to have the discipline to train regularly, no one can rule anything out with him.

If the confrontation between Mr. Musk, 52, and Mr. Zuckerberg, 39, continues, it will be a rare sight, even in the tech industry’s swanky world. While Steve Jobs and Bill Gates used to pick each other up, the closest the tech world has come to real mathematical feuds before has been Among the billionaires of yachtsmen Such as Larry Ellison from Oracle and Hasso Plattner from SAP.

But two wealthy tech giants grapple, hit and kick in Las Vegas or the Roman arena? Nobody would have dreamed of it.

Meta declined to comment. Mr. Musk did not respond to a request for comment.

Mr. Zuckerberg and Mr. Musk have for a long time oscillated between being rivals, enemies, and outright enemies. The two have blasted each other over the years, including about Mr. Musk’s SpaceX rockets, Data privacy scandals in meta and more. Recently, Mr. Zuckerberg dispatched a team at Meta to build a competitor to Mr. Musk’s Twitter, codenamed Project 92.

Taking their rivalry any further than that irony, Mr. White of the UFC said he had concerns about the physical gaps between the two billionaires. Aside from the 13-year age difference, Musk is said to be at least 70 pounds heavier than Mr. Zuckerberg. In official mixed martial arts competitions, athletes are generally matched by weight.

“We have two men who have never fought professionally, and they are in two completely different weight classes,” said Mr. White. However, he said, “It will be the biggest fight in the history of combat sports.”

Mr. Zuckerberg is particularly familiar with the UFC world. Over the past 18 months, he has embarked on a personal journey of immersing and delving into Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, a martial art in which competitors attempt to submit to their opponent and is used in UFC combat.

Mr. Zuckerberg began training a lark in his garage in 2021, building what he calls a “mini-academy” with a circle of friends who squabble with him. He has said he appreciates that Brazilian jiu-jitsu requires “100 percent focus” and strategic thinking to defeat an opponent, rather than brute force.

Mr. Zuckerberg has sought out martial arts experts, including Dave Camarillo, James Terry and Khae Wu. In May, he competed in his first public martial arts tournament in Redwood City, California, which he attended in disguise—until the moment he took off his hat and sunglasses to fight. He won gold and silver medals in the challenge.

Last year, the Meta also announced that it had partnered with the UFC to bring mixed martial arts fights to Horizon Worlds, its virtual reality app.

Mr. White said that Mr. Zuckerberg was really dedicated to the sport.

“I’ve been talking to Zuckerberg now for probably close to two years now,” he said. “And there is never such banter or that we joke and laugh.” Meta’s CEO, he said, “was a serious Meta the whole time.”

Mr. Zuckerberg is probably in a fighting mood. Two people close to him said he was following a strict exercise regimen, going for runs and challenging friends and colleagues to beat his times. This month, he posted a personal record of complete the “Murph” challenge, Which requires completing a series of pull-ups, push-ups, running several miles and doing hundreds of squats, all while wearing military-grade body armor.

“I think basically playing sports that require your full attention, is really important for my mental health and the way I stay focused on everything I do,” he said in a recent interview. Podcast episode.

Mr. Musk, on the other hand, has chirp It “hardly” worked out once He suffered a back injury which required surgery after participating in an exhibition with a sumo wrestler. This month, it is He said He has trained in “Judo, Kyokushin (Full Contact)”—two Japanese martial arts—and “No Rules Street Fighting.”

“He made it very clear: ‘I’m not going to lose any weight,’” Mr. White said of Mr. Musk’s approach to a potential showdown. “Are we going to fight or are we not going to fight?” Mr. White said to him.

This week, Lex Friedman posted photos of himself practicing judo with Mr. Musk. Friedman, who also trained in jiu-jitsu with Zuckerberg, did not respond to a request for comment.

At least one person doesn’t seem to like the fight: May Musk, Mr. Musk’s mother.

“Do not encourage this match!” She recently chirpalong with two frowning emojis.